Undergraduate · Yale College
Yale asks for two teacher recommendations and a counsellor's School Report, and it reads every application in its own context. For an IB Diploma student the questions are practical: which teachers to ask, what the counsellor must send, and how Yale treats an IB programme. Yale's pages carry no entry-year label, so everything here is treated as evidence for the previous cycle and not as the 2028 requirement.
Official information · read 25 October 2026, no entry-year label
Taken from Yale Undergraduate Admissions' Requirements, Recommendation Letters and What Yale Looks For pages and read on 25 October 2026. The pages carry no entry-year label, so for a 2028-entry application every statement below is evidence for the previous cycle and may change; check Yale's pages for the 2028-entry details.
First-year applications include letters of recommendation, a transcript and standardised test scores. Applicants request letters from two teachers and one counsellor, and include a School Report with transcript and ACT or SAT results.
Request letters from two teachers who have taught you recently in core academic subjects, which include languages, math, sciences and social studies. Letters from teachers of performing arts, studio art or leadership do not fulfil the requirement but may be submitted as supplemental letters.
Yale says the best recommendations are not always from the teachers in whose class you earned the highest grades, but from those who know you best. Teachers from your junior and senior years often write the most insightful letters.
A counsellor, or another school official, submits the School Report with an official transcript that includes all completed secondary school courses. Seniors also submit a Mid-Year Report once first-marking-period grades are available.
Yale considers every applicant within their own context. It asks whether your school offers AP courses, an International Baccalaureate programme, neither or both, and only expects you to take advantage of such courses if your school provides them.
Official sources
Read on 25 October 2026 on Yale Undergraduate Admissions' Requirements, Recommendation Letters and What Yale Looks For pages. The pages carry no entry-year label. ACT and SAT policy details, deadlines, essay prompts, supplements and financial aid were not read and are not stated. The pages read set no IB score requirements.
Recommendations
Yale asks for two letters from teachers who have taught you recently in core academic subjects, usually Math, English, Foreign Language, Social Studies or Science. For an IB student that usually means choosing among your Higher Level and Standard Level teachers.
Yale says the best recommendations are not always from the teachers in whose class you earned the highest grades, but from those who can discuss the substance of your intellect and character, and who know you best.
Yale says teachers who have taught you in your junior and/or senior years often write the most insightful letters.
Letters from teachers of performing arts, studio art or leadership will not fulfil Yale's requirement, but may be submitted as supplemental letters.
You may ask one additional recommender, but Yale says most successful applicants submit only the required letters. The most useful ones add new information.
The school report
Yale asks for a letter from your school's college counsellor and for the counsellor, or another school official, to submit a School Report with an official transcript including all completed secondary school courses. If your school has no one serving as a college counsellor, Yale says to request a recommendation from a school administrator. Yale also says a counsellor is required to submit the School Report with a transcript, and that it understands many applicants cannot develop a close connection with a counsellor. Seniors also submit a Mid-Year Report with official grades from the first marking period of senior year.
Your IB Diploma
Yale says every applicant is considered within their own context, so that no student is disadvantaged for not taking advantage of a resource that was not available to them. It asks whether your school offers AP courses, an International Baccalaureate programme, neither or both, and says it only expects you to take advantage of such courses if your high school provides them. The pages read for this guide set no IB score requirement, and this guide does not state any.
Testing
Yale says applicants self-report scores from the ACT or SAT when completing the application. Non-native English speakers graduating from a secondary school where English is not the language of instruction should also submit results from an English proficiency test. Dates and score expectations are not stated here.
Integrity
Yale says that if an essay does not sound like the person who writes it, it cannot serve very well as a personal statement. Avandy provides independent academic and admissions support and is not affiliated with Yale. Support can help a student understand the requirements and plan whom to ask and when. It cannot write or alter any essay, and it cannot write, draft or fabricate a recommendation letter. No outcome is promised.
Planning for 2028 entry
Yale's pages carry no entry-year label, so nothing on them is confirmed for 2028 entry. Use them to understand the structure of the application, then check Yale's own pages for the 2028-entry details.
These are Yale's wording today, without an entry-year label.
This guide has not read them. Check Yale for the values that apply to your application year.
Think about which teachers know you best, make sure your counsellor knows the deadlines and what to send, and keep your IB subject and programme details accurate.
Questions
Two from teachers who have taught you recently in core academic subjects, and one from your school counsellor.
Yale says to choose teachers in core academic subjects who know you well, often from your junior or senior years. The best letter is not always from the teacher who gave the highest grade.
Yale says to request a recommendation from a school administrator.
The pages read for this guide set none. Yale says it considers each applicant in context and only expects you to take advantage of IB courses if your school provides them.
No. A recommendation must come from the teacher or counsellor who actually knows the applicant. Avandy cannot draft or fabricate recommendation letters.
They are Yale's current wording, with no entry-year label. Check Yale's pages again for the 2028-entry details.
Students and families
Tell us about the student's curriculum, their teachers, the universities on the list, and the intended year of entry. A senior adviser will review the academic profile before recommending how to plan.
